Israeli forces assault father of Palestinian prisoner during violent detention

Oct. 4, 2017 5:34 P.M. (Updated: Oct. 7, 2017 8:28 P.M.)

HEBRON (Ma'an) -- The Palestinian Committee Prisoners’ Affairs said on Wednesday that Israeli forces assaulted a Palestinian man when Israeli forces raided his house to detain his 22-year-old son three days ago.

Israeli soldiers broke in the house during a raid on Oct. 1 to detain Usama al-Rajabi, and beat his father until his shoulder was dislocated after they searched and ransacked the home.

Usama is currently held at Israel's Etzion detention center south of Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank.

Separately, a number of underage prisoners told a lawyer from the committee that they have been tortured, beaten, and assaulted during their detention and interrogation in Israeli detention centers. Hiba Ighbariya, the lawyer, identified the children who the testimonies as 16-year-old Wael Naim from Misliya near Jenin and 17-year-old Usayd Saleh from Tubas.

Human rights groups have also widely documented the abuse of Palestinian children by Israeli forces and the harsh interrogation practices used to force their confessions, which has long been the target of criticism by the international community.

Defense for Children International - Palestine has said their research showed that almost two-thirds of Palestinian children detained in the occupied West Bank by Israeli forces had endured physical violence after their arrest.

Israeli forces detained 522 Palestinians, including 130 minors and 16 women, over the course of the month of August, according to a joint report released Palestinian institutions focusing on prisoners' rights.

The total number of Palestinians in Israeli prisons reached 6,300 prisoners, the report said, 64 of them women. Among them are 10 girls under the age of 18 and 300 underage boys, 450 administrative detainees imprisoned without charge or trial, and 12 members of the Palestinian Legislative Council, the Palestinian parliament.